Toolkeel

Passport photo sizes by country: US, UK, Canada, Schengen and Australia

The exact passport and visa photo sizes, head heights and pixel dimensions for the US, UK, Canada, Schengen and Australia, and how to print them on 6x4.

Photos2 min readUpdated

Key takeaways

  • US photos are 2 × 2 inches (51 × 51 mm); the UK, Schengen countries and Australia use 35 × 45 mm; Canada uses 50 × 70 mm.
  • Head size is measured from the chin to the top of the head, not the hair.
  • At 300 dpi, a US photo is 600 × 600 pixels and a 35 × 45 mm photo is 413 × 531 pixels.
  • A 6 × 4 inch print holds eight 35 × 45 mm photos or six US photos.
On this page
  1. Sizes at a glance
  2. Make one at home
  3. Common reasons photos are rejected

Sizes at a glance

PhotoSizeHead, chin to crownPixels at 300 dpiOn a 6 × 4 print
United States passport or visa2 × 2 in (51 × 51 mm)25 to 35 mm (1 to 1 3/8 in)600 × 6006
United Kingdom passport35 × 45 mm29 to 34 mm413 × 5318
Canada passport50 × 70 mm31 to 36 mm591 × 8274
Schengen visa, most EU passports35 × 45 mmabout 32 to 36 mm413 × 5318
Australia passport35 × 45 mm32 to 36 mm413 × 5318

For online UK applications, the digital photo must be at least 600 pixels wide and 750 pixels high. For US online renewals, the State Department accepts square photos from 600 × 600 to 1200 × 1200 pixels.

Make one at home

  1. Stand about half a metre in front of a plain, light wall, with light falling evenly on your face and no shadows behind you.
  2. Ask someone to take the photo at eye level, about 1.5 metres away, without zoom filters or beauty modes.
  3. Open the passport photo maker, choose your country and zoom until the top of your head touches the crown line and your chin sits between the two chin lines.
  4. Download the single photo for an online application, or the 6 × 4 print sheet and print it at a photo shop at actual size.

Common reasons photos are rejected

  • The head is too small or too large for the frame, often because the photo was cropped by eye.
  • Shadows on the face or the wall behind.
  • Glasses: the US no longer allows them in most cases, and other countries require no glare and eyes clearly visible.
  • Edited photos: filters, skin smoothing and background replacement are not allowed. Our tool only crops and scales; it never changes your face or background.
  • A photo older than six months, or one that no longer looks like you.

Rules change and some offices have extra requirements, so always check the official page for your application before you submit or print.

Sources

  1. US Department of State: Passport photo requirementstravel.state.gov
  2. GOV.UK: Photos for passportsgov.uk
  3. Government of Canada: Passport photoscanada.ca
Written by the Toolkeel team at Sole Digital Media

Fact-checked against the sources above. We test every tool we mention. Editorial policy.

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